One of my favorite “new” Christmas movies is The Polar Express, with Tom Hanks voicing several characters and lending his facial features to the conductor of the magical train. I had never read the children’s book by the same name, but had seen the beautiful artwork that graced the cover.

Once I had seen the movie and read the book, I found both charming in a one sense but also dark and disturbing in another.Most of the characters appear distorted and many of them menacing, so the story is not exactly “The Night Before Christmas.” (Quick note: I am not” jumping the season” like many retailers, although I should note that Target (I think) had Christmas presents and decorations on display of September 1. This post does pertain to the present time of year, as I hope you will see.)

The Polar Express has an outstanding soundtrack, with some songs by Alvin Silvestri, including my new favorite “new” Christmas song, “Believe,” sung by Josh Groban. One other standout is a cartoonized SteveTyler singing “rockin’ on Top of the World,” complete with elves and choreography. The rest of the music, once the kids reach the North Pole, consist of Christmas “standards” by the likes of Bing Crosby, Perry Como, and Dean Martin.

The connection with the present time comes with the song “Hot, Hot, Hot” which is sung by the Hanks character and waiters on the train as they dance and fly down the aisle while hot chocolate arcs in glorious streams through the air to land in waiting cups.The children appear to be either amazed or terrified by this spectacle(there is sometimes a thin line between the two). Here are the lyrics to the song:

You might be wondering what this song has to do with anything, particularly since it is a Christmas song and it is now late September. The connection is that I’ve been singing it while I add insulation to my attic. The reason I’m singing it is that the temperature in an attic on an 80 degree day is above 110 degrees. I could wait for cooler weather, but where’s the fun in that? In order to not itch to death from the fiberglass in the insulation I wear jeans, socks, old shoes, a nylon jacket, goggles, a mask, a hard hat and surgical gloves.So it’s very hot. But I’m increasing the R-vale of insulation in the attic to about 6 so next winter the gas company will pay me. So I’m not now.In only ten years my heat savings will pay for the 26 bundles of insulaton I bought. Now that’s hot!